On January 18th, 2020, Lawrenceville invited the Pennington School, Union Catholic, and Stuart Country Day School for a varsity scrimmage. With a 5:06:17 in the December Scrimmage, I was able to shave off a couple of seconds to run my first ever sub-5 mile with a time of 4:58:12!!! This was a goal I have been thinking of and working towards since the very start of the season. I am exceptionally delighted about the racing results, the remaining meets of the winter track season, as well as the whole of outdoor track season in the spring.
General Thoughts/Comments on Mile Race:
When I was racing my first mile in the December varsity scrimmage, I had a fixed mindset of simply sticking on the back of the group rather than having the confidence of running until the very very very very end until you physically cannot feel your legs. For my sub-5 mile race, I went into the race with a mindset of hurdling over the 5-minute mark and using every single remainder of my energy on the last lap - it turns out this mindset works pretty well. Starting from the 1200M mark, I was running pass other talented runners and fully removed the fixed mindset of merely following the herd. Instead, this time, I had the ambition. I had the burning determination to set a personal record. I had the perseverance to pace, push, sprint during the intense race that eventually led me to success.
1600M Race Split Breakdown:
- 200M Mark: 34
- 400M Mark: 1:11 (37)
- 600M Mark: 1:49 (38)
- 800M Mark: 2:28 (39)
- 100M Mark: 3:06 (38)
- 1200M Mark: 3:44 (38)
- 1400M Mark: 4:22 (38)
- 1600M Mark: 4:58 (36)
I was able to maintain the same pace throughout the race and finish strong with a 36 second for the last 200M. This shows endurance improvement, and I am glad that I was able to shave off a lot of time from the last 200M mark. Although I am pleased with my first sub-5 mile, I certainly know that I can improve my time and cut down more and more. The reason I feel confident about improvement is because I feel as if I was feeling too comfortable in the fifth and fourth to last lap, meaning that I could've increased the pace and pushed a little harder on those two vital laps. Furthermore, I am extremely glad that all the work since the beginning is starting to pay off. The sprinting workouts, tempo runs along the BMX loop (course outside of school), and the agonizing core workouts have definitely contributed, and I am sure they will continue to do so in the future. Last but by no means least, I would like to say an immense thank you to all my teammates, whether they are sophomores or seniors, and the coaching staff team for motivating me to work harder every single day and allowing me to reach my fullest potential.
The Importance of Sleep:
Usually, Lawrenceville has a half-day of classes on Saturday, yet we didn't have any classes due to multiple interscholastic teams traveling for away meets. Luckily, our meet was a home game fixture, meaning that I had the whole morning to relax before the race in the afternoon. As there were no classes on Saturday, I was able to obtain 8-hours of solid sleep, leading to better body conditions throughout the entire time before and during the race. From this experience, I learned the true importance of managing time wisely to allow more time for sleeping even during normal school days as it will increase the efficiency of your body both mentally and physically!
Down Below is the 1600M Race Footage:
1600M Race Split Breakdown for Next Meet/Goal for Next Meet:
- 200M Mark: 34
- 400M Mark: 1:10 (36)
- 600M Mark: 1:47 (37)
- 800M Mark: 2:25 (38)
- 100M Mark: 3:03 (38)
- 1200M Mark: 3:40 (37)
- 1400M Mark: 4:17 (37)
- 1600M Mark: 4:53 (36)
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